Part sci-fi and part fantasy, Ashes and Rain picks up where Khe left off -- and does a wonderful job of furthering and enriching the original story.

As this book opens, Khe knows she has changed, and she is becoming aware of how much her efforts, and those of the doumanas she assisted, have changed their world. They have overthrown the lumani, the shadowy race that ran the doumanas' society -- but now that no one is telling them what to do, the doumanas don't know how to make their own decisions. Because of that, many doumanas distrust Khe, and she finds she literally cannot go home again.

But more changes are in store, for both Khe and for all of her kind. The road to get there will be rocky, but it must be traveled. The question is whether Khe is up to the journey.

Many times, a follow-up book suffers in comparison to the first -- but that is not the case here. Razevich's doumanas are wonderfully drawn, and Khe herself is an amazing character. I was thrilled to be in her world again. Highly recommended.